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A PASSION FOR MUSIC

Module III: Pursuing a Career in Music

Teacher Facilitation Guide

The following curriculum materials are designed to be used with the Achievement Television program A Passion for Music. VHS tapes of the program can be ordered through the Gift Shop of the Academy of Achievement web site.

Program Overview
Module III continues a discussion of passion for music from the vantage points of musician, producer, and listener. In this module, panelists voice opinions on the importance of being an individual and expressing your own thoughts and ideas instead of saying what someone else has already said, advice that is relevant for musicians and non-musicians.

Viewing/Facilitation Strategies

• Introduce the Pre-Viewing Activity to the whole class. After students complete the activity, allow time for them to share their responses.
• Review and discuss the lives and musical accomplishments of each person on the panel. What perspective did they each bring to the panel discussion? Discuss terms.
• View Module III and if time allows, immediately break into small groups for the group activity.
• During the next class period, have the telecast available for students to review. Ask them to complete a Curriculum Connection activity independently or with a partner.
• Assign the Research Project as a class assignment or as an optional independent project.

Student Academic Standards

• Knows various roles that musicians perform (e.g., entertainer, teacher, transmitter of cultural tradition) and representative individuals who have functioned in these roles
• Understands the functions music serves, roles of musicians (e.g., lead guitarist in a rock band, composer of jingles for commercials, singer in Peking opera), and conditions under which music is typically performed in various cultures of the world
• Understands the roles of musicians (e.g., orchestra conductor, folk singer, church organist) in various music settings and cultures

Student Activities

Pre-Viewing Activity:
Students prepare for the video by completing a chart that identifies what they know about the subject of careers in music and what they would like to know.

Group Activity
In small groups, students prepare for and take part in a debate on the subject of "selling out" and what it means to be your own person in the field of music.

Curriculum Connections Activities

Careers: Quincy Jones - Composing and Conducting Music and Sports: Wynton Marsalis - Dealing with Performance Fears

Research Project
Students conduct research on different types of music-related careers. They share their information in the form of a computer database, magazine article or musician profile.

Terms to Discuss

• compromised
• corruption
• creative arts
• forethought
• hone
• hypocrisy
• provoke
• stereotypes
• vocation